The NFL has made the announcement many have been waiting on in the wake of the game between the Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals getting postponed.
In an official release on Thursday night, the league revealed plans to forego the fixture due to several factors, including the fact that the teams in question will not be affected as it pertains to them qualifying for the playoffs based on that game.
The league also considered the possibility of all 14 playoff teams being affected by them having to push the start of the postseason back by one week.
“This has been a very difficult week,” Commissioner Roger Goodell said. “We continue to focus on the recovery of Damar Hamlin and are encouraged by the improvements in his condition as well as the tremendous outpouring of support and care for Damar and his family from across the country.
“We are also incredibly appreciative of the amazing work of the medical personnel and commend each and every one of them.”
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The NFL admits that the cancelation of the Bills-Bengals fixture creates “potential inequities in certain playoff scenarios.” But they have also disclosed plans to address them during a Special League Meeting among the teams on Friday.
The meeting will also play host to discussions regarding the elements noted below:
1 – The AFC Championship Game will be played at a neutral site if the participating teams played an unequal number of games and both could have been the number one seed and hosted the game had all AFC clubs played a full 17-game regular season. Those circumstances involve Buffalo or Cincinnati qualifying for the game as a road team and are listed below:
Scenario 1
Buffalo and Kansas City both win or both tie – a Buffalo vs Kansas City championship game would be at a neutral site.
Scenario 2
Buffalo and Kansas City both lose and Baltimore wins or ties – a Buffalo vs Kansas City championship game would be at a neutral site.
Scenario 3
Buffalo and Kansas City both lose and Cincinnati wins – a Buffalo or Cincinnati vs Kansas City championship game would be at a neutral site.
2 – If Baltimore defeats Cincinnati in Week 18 it will have defeated Cincinnati, a divisional opponent, twice but will not be able to host a playoff game because Cincinnati will have a higher winning percentage for a 16-game schedule than Baltimore will for a 17-game schedule.
If Baltimore defeats Cincinnati and if those two clubs are scheduled to play a Wild Card game against one another, the site for that game would be determined by a coin toss. If Cincinnati wins the Week 18 game or if Baltimore and Cincinnati are not scheduled to play one another in the Wild Card round, the game sites would be determined by the regular scheduling procedures.
“As we considered the football schedule, our principles have been to limit disruption across the league and minimize competitive inequities,” Goodell added. “I recognize that there is no perfect solution. The proposal we are asking the ownership to consider, however, addresses the most significant potential equitable issues created by the difficult, but necessary, decision not to play the game under these extraordinary circumstances.”
Meanwhile, Damar Hamlin’s recovery has progressed very well amid the troubling circumstances. The Bills safety has regained consciousness and was communicating with doctors as of Wednesday.
